HERITAGE CHARM WITH MODERN POLISH
Kathryn Pistilli grew up in Westmount, but in her 20s she moved around — first to the United States to study, then back to Montreal. After that, she went to the University of London in the UK to do a degree in economics. When she had completed only one year of study, she withdrew, opting instead for a job that she “didn’t want to pass up.”
The job in question involved moving to Madrid and writing about business-related topics. Leading American publications such as Forbes Magazine and the New York Times Magazine had outsourced projects to a team of contributors whose task it was to travel to other foreign countries “to promote places that Americans don’t typically invest in.”
Now 34, Pistilli recalls that when she was in her 20s, it was a “great job,” but after years of travelling and living in hotels, she’d had enough. She moved to New York to take a break and go to culinary school — something she had dreamt of doing for a long time.
In 2011, she met the man she was to marry, New Yorker Richard Pistilli, who works in the financial services business. They married in Montreal in 2013, but went back to the Big Apple, where they lived for a while in an apartment. After they had their first daughter, Sandrine, they came to the conclusion that New York City was not the best place to raise a family so they moved to Montreal, which Richard describes as having that “city feel” but without the hectic pace of New York.
Their current abode is an elegant, two-storey (plus a basement) townhouse in Westmount with five bedrooms (one serves as a home office) and five bathrooms (two are ensuite). Built around the 1920s, the building has been renovated from top to bottom.
Q When you first walked into the building, what was it that particularly grabbed your attention?
Richard: The architectural details: the high ceilings, the mouldings and the staircase. I loved all those classic features. At the same time, the living and dining areas were spacious and open and they created a flow of energy. Also, the kitchen was custom designed. It had clean lines. The style was simple and everything was tucked away behind the cabinet doors.
(The kitchen is mostly white with black accents and it has a large centre island with a quartz countertop.)
It was a really fortuitous find — a turnkey property — and we both loved the fact that the style was a mix of modern and traditional.
Q You mentioned that, at one time, the townhouse was part of a condo complex?
Kathryn: That’s right. A company called Lakeshore Construction had acquired the property, gutted the six condo units that were here and turned the space into two, large, spacious townhomes — this one and our neighbours’.
Q I guess the construction company retained many of the old features? R: Retained them or redid them in the original style.
Q So there was no need for you to do any renovations?
R: There are a lot of old homes in Westmount and when we were looking around, we did in fact contemplate buying a place that needed to be fixed up. In the end, we decided it wasn’t worth it.